Guess it’s all in my head... | Arthritis Information

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Well...PC thinks I may have some type of body infection, and Ortho thinks it may be systemic...don't see the RD until May 10th.

Is it all in my head that I have had flu like symptoms since Jan. Extremely tired, all my joints aching, stiffness, carpal tunnel in both wrists,  etc... Naproxen & Tramadol did not help, but when PC put me on Prednizone took almost all my symptoms away.

RF and Lupus test were negative, x-rays of hands and knee looked good according to the Ortho...

Am I just crazy?????????????????? Blessed39171.4992592593

I can't believe that you were given predisone and had such a good reaction and they won't even consider the fact that you have some sort of inflammatory disease. Are you seeing an RD? I'd refer myself to one if not. Something's wrong here.

 

Blessed you are not crazy.  My labs are all negative and my first     X-rays were good.  It wasn't too much time after that x-rays did show early bone erosion so I was grateful that my Dr had started me on MTX.  I didn't even swell until a year later but then wowie so we don't always present with the medical establishment's perfect symptoms at first.

Until the Enbrel started to help I continued to wonder if I really had RA.  One way that some Dr's use is if Prednisone helps then it is some type of inflammatory arthritis since Pred. reduces swelling.  Prednisone works wonders for me as well but due to OA I cannot take it much as it leaches calcium.

Take care and I hope your rheumy appt. gives you answers.

Hi Blessed!

  Wow! I sure hope you have some luck with your rheumy. Your symptoms sound just about exactly like mine! I also have carpal tunnel in both hands...had left one done, but not alot of difference to be honest. And waiting for the right still.  My first RD kept blaming everything on the carpal tunnel even tho I was showing positive for ra.(And I don't see how carpal tunnel would affect my knees and feet!!! lol )I too have been having trouble getting diagnosed until I saw a new rheumatologist a week and a half ago. She said I definately have Ra and has started me on mtx along with prednisone. I have been on prednisone before and it really helped me alot too!

   I hope luck goes your way Blessed, just keep on pushing till it does! My GP has done a world of good for me!

                                                             Cori!

Dear blessed,Oh this seems to be our plight! Convince everyone this is REAL!!, we know we have something 'awful' , it is so obvious this stuff isn't just regular pain, regular swelling from an injury, regular--anything!! So, please keep your chin up and trust yourself and find a doc that doesn't look down at you and say, 'are you sure' >>>>>be brave, be powerful!! sarahOh hun! It's not all in your head. In 23 years of blood work, I have NEVER tested positive. And by god, I *DO* have RA, believe me. And I get mostly good x-rays. In fact, I get mostly great x-rays. But I still hurt. And ache. And am fatigued. You are not alone!! *hugs*My blood work is negative also and x-rays only showed some osteoarthritic changes over the years but MRI showed quite a bit of joint deterioration. I went back and forth thinking a lot of it was in my head, too. Hopefully the RD will pick up on all the other stuff going on. You've got to make yourself heard, I wish I would have complained more to my dr. over the last few years.You sound like a classic case of sero-negative rheumatoid arthritis - and almost exactly like the way I was in the beginning. Don't let them blow you off, because by the time someone figures it out, real damage can have been done to your joints - the rest of you as well.

Start a journal of all of your symptoms. Take them to your RD in May, if  you have to wait that long (that's not unusual, by the way - it usually takes a while to get that first appointment). Take photographs, if there is anything to see. By the time my RD saw me, the prednisone had taken away the balloon joints and most of the pain - if she weren't very good and a believer in sero-negative RA, she would never have diagnosed me.

Do NOT let them refuse to treat you. It's not their joints that will be ruined.

I hope it goes well and you get your diagnosis - and treatment!

It is not all in your head, it is part of the RA....

I am going through the same thing with this "lumps in breast" the Radiologist cannot see that they are bad tissue......they only do stuff for bad tissue.......well of course, let's just wait till it gets so serious that nothing can be done ok? I know they are trying and they see a bazillion patients a day, but I am important to me....and this is the only body I have to get me through old age!

You really need to try and get to an RD before your scheduled appt. This is a time intensive disease and I think a lot of it is that the DR.'s just do not want to take the time....I dunno. It is your life, make all the DR.'s LISTEN TO YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!MAKE THEM LISTEN! Even if you piss 'em all off! 

jode

I'll just echo what everyone else has said! If your pain went away
with the Pred, that is an excellent indicator that you have something
inflammatory going on.

I'm seronegative, too. My blood work always looks fine. But, I have
RA. Thank God I had a rheumy who did a bone scan.

Push and push hard for another doctor. You should not have to
suffer. And you are not crazy! Good Luck!Thanks so much everyone for your words of encouragement!!!

Hopefully, the RD I have an appt with May 10th will listen.

Fiona - I will take your advice and start a journal. Great idea.

Thanks again everyone!! Of course your Xrays were fine, you are in the early stages.  You need a MRI to see any changes in the fluids and bone marrow.  You need to be seen by a RD.  Most (not all) doctors who aren't RD's don't have a clue; they are ignorant of their own ignorance.
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